New McDonald’s to open in Croatia: How we rank in restaurants per capita

There are over 40,000 McDonald’s restaurants around the world

A new McDonald’s restaurant is set to open soon in Dugopolje, near the city of Split, bringing the number of McDonald’s restaurants in Croatia to around 50.

The first McDonald’s restaurants in Croatia opened in Zagreb on 2 February 1996. In 1997, the first restaurant outside of the capital Zagreb opened in Pula.

This was followed by the opening of restaurants in Split, Osijek, Karlovac and Velika Gorica in 1998, and in Varaždin a year later.

McDonald’s first opened in Croatia in 1996

Per capita comparison: Croatia and the world

Globally, McDonald’s operates over 40,000 restaurants across more than 100 countries. 

With a population of approximately 3.8 million, Croatia’s ratio stands at about 13 restaurants per million inhabitants.

Croatia has seen growth however since 2016, when it had just 25 restaurants—or 6.25 per million—making it one of the EU’s lower-ranking nations at the time.

Croatia is still well below many Western countries in terms of McDonald’s outlets per capita.

For instance:

The United States: Leads with approximately 13,375 outlets, equating to about 41 restaurants per million people.

Canada: Is new with about 39.2 per million.

Australia: Roughly 39.2 per million.

Japan: Leads Asia with nearly 3,000 McDonald’s for its 125 million people, which is approximately 22.9 per million people.

France: France has around 22 restaurants per million inhabitants.

United Kingdom: Home to about 21 restaurants per million residents.

Austria:  Roughly 22.1 per million.

Israel: With its urbanised population and Western consumer habits has a high ranking with about 20.8 per million people.

Germany: Boasts over 1,500 McDonald’s restaurants, translating to approximately 18 restaurants per million people.

Sweden: Has a strong presence also with around 18.8 per million residents.

In contrast, some Western European countries have fewer McDonald’s per capita than Croatia.

For instance:

Spain: With around 500 restaurants for its 47 million residents, sits at about 10.6 restaurants per million people.

Italy: Has roughly 11.7 restaurants per million residents.

Countries like Montenegro have a minimal McDonald’s presence, with only one restaurant operating in the country.

Croatia has around 50 restaurants today

Meanwhile, Albania, Kosovo, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, do not have any McDonald’s outlets at the moment.

Eastern European countries tend to have fewer McDonald’s per capita. For instance, Romania, with an estimated 100 restaurants for 19 million people, would have about 5.3 per million, though exact numbers may vary.